Standings & Stuff: 10/13/21

Browns QB Baker Mayfield will make $18-rocks next season. (Photo by Duane Barker/MSV)

By Joe Torosian

Stuff:

Cardinals: Not buying this team. So Frisco holds them to 10, but they blowout the Rams at SoFi? To me they caught LA on a bad day with a bad scheme. Cards nearly lost at home to a suspect 49ers team starting a rookie at quarterback. Still, waiting for Chandler Jones next sack. This team is poised for a collapse.

Rams: Darious Williams is expected to be out for a few weeks, so will this finally force DC Raheem Morris to use Jalen Ramsey on opposing teams best receiver? And why should that be a question? Team is tough, team is good, Rams fans praying Sean McVay’s name doesn’t pop up in any Gruden emails. 

Radical Move: Cut find a way to make a deal for the Jets Marcus Maye (more in “From The RamCave).

Seahawks: Word, again, is that Russell Wilson will demand a trade. Note to Russ: You want out and you want to play for a contender? Take a pay cut. Pride will keep this team competitive, but as of right now with Wilson out and the defense non-existent, they are done. 

Radical Move: Might be heresy to say, but Seattle’s front office should bite the bullet and move linebacker Bobby Wagner to a contender for a draft pick.

49ers: In the same boat as the Seahawks. But they have more abundant, younger, talent. If they can get consistency at quarterback they will be a playoff team and a thorn in the side of Sean McVay and the Rams.

Stuff:

Packers: The loss of Jaire Alexander hurts. They won’t miss him against the Bears this week? But they will against Washington, Arizona, and Kansas City. Heaven forbid they come to SoFi at the end of November without him. Green Bay remains lucky, they’re not dominant.

Bears: Caught reeling Raider team in Las Vegas…hopefully, what happens in Vegas doesn’t stay in Vegas. If the defense can perform and everyone is patient with Justin Fields this team will be okay. But I don’t know if okay is enough to save HC Matt Nagy or able to make his patience long-suffering.

Vikings: I keep hearing this team is ready to breakthrough. But they look like a boxing champion trying to hold on in the last round. Dalvin Cook is supposed to be back, so it should get better. I don’t like this team.

Lions: I’ve never seen so many people cheering for the Lions. They’re America’s new lovable losers. I even catch myself rooting for them—although I think it’s because of their uniforms. I’m calling their first victory against the Eagles at home on Halloween.

Stuff:

Cowboys: This team’s best win was against Carolina in Week 4. Eagles? No. Chargers? That was a gift. Giants? Not a great team. So they were lucky against the Chargers and lost to the Bucs. The good news is, it doesn’t look like they’re going to be challenged until—maybe—Kansas City in late November. Could finish with best record in the NFC, get the bye and a home game, and then…lose in the first round at home. They need a punch in the nose to find out how they respond.

Washington: The investigation madness is distracting from the poor play on the field. The efforts to remove Dan Snyder as owner is keeping the world from looking at this horrible defense—likely saving Jack Del Rio’s job for the moment. They’ve got the talent to shutdown the Chiefs at home this week…but there’s no reason to believe they will.

Eagles: In comparison—they’ve got more talent than the Bears, especially at receiver, but the jury is still out on Jalen Hurts arm. They shouldn’t be expected to compete for the playoffs but need to find out about Hurts. So it’s a JV season.

Giants: Saquon Barkley is turning into the new Ki-Jana Carter. It’s time to move off of him, maybe even move him, and get talent upfront to protect Daniel Jones. Remember Jones’ injury was a concussion and those things can add up fast and end a career.

Radical Move: Trade Barkley (Making $7-rocks in 2022) to a contender in need and pick up some pieces or draft picks to aid Jones.

Stuff:

Buccaneers: As bad as the secondary is, there’s not a team they can’t outscore. The defense is currently ranked 17th out of 32 in the NFL. As long as they can stay in the middle of the pack—get Gronk back and keep Brady upright—they can go back to the Super Bowl. Problem? Among edge defenders, Shaq Barrett is ranked 34th in rushing the passer.

Panthers: This team has made the investments to win now, but the loss to Philly was egregious. Sam Darnold was seeing ghosts and he better get a Ghostbuster before the Vikings come to town. If the Panthers want to be taken seriously they need to beat Minnesota and its pass rush.

Saints: Sean Payton is keeping the reins on Jameis Winston, and it’s going well. But through five games Winston has less than a thousand (892) passing yards. That has to change. He’s 30th (116) in attempts, and that has to change. If NOLA is serious about competing, at least by the second half of the season, the playbook has to open up. Otherwise you’re wasting Alvin Kamara.

Falcons: The salary cap and Matt Ryan’s salary puts the the kibosh on almost everything…but thinking in the abstract…wouldn’t Seattle like to have Ryan right now? Wouldn’t Miami love to have Ryan right now? Wouldn’t Detroit be in the win column if Ryan was playing for them right now? Ryan would be a rental, but why not? Atlanta’s not going anywhere with him and he makes way too much money.

Stuff:

Chargers: The offense is elite. Everyone stays healthy they’ll take the team deep. But the defense needs a win this week in Baltimore to put the Bolts on Super Bowl watch. If they can manage to stop the run (yada, yada, yada), I don’t think Lamar Jackson can win two weeks in a row with his arm. LA’s secondary is better than Indy’s. Also, GM Tom Telesco and HC Brandon Staley better put their heads together on their kicking situation.

Broncos: The good news is the chaotic Raiders are coming to Mile High. The bad news is the Broncos and their defense have been overrated by everyone except JoeTorosian.Com. Now this is a team that should be thinking about a Matt Ryan rental— if they can swing the cap or get a renegotiation. Teddy Bridgewater is playing well—for Teddy Bridgewater—but can he get them a playoff win? They need to run the ball more.

Raiders: Their next three games—with no drama—are winnable. If they can go 3-0 against Denver, Philly, and the Giants…they will become the NFL’s version of the New Orleans Saints post-Katrina. They’ll have survived Hurricane Gruden and be praised for their heart, camaraderie, in overcoming such a troubling time. That’s what could happen…But it’s the Raiders, they’ll lose two of those three games and the front office will search for options to be relevant.

Chiefs: I’m taking the Chiefs in DC this week. This is a must win game. They have to win this game. But this is also a KC defense that gave up 30-points to Philly. If they do lose, then I think the talk will be about Andy Reid’s retirement and Eric Bieniemy’s ascension to HC.

Stuff:

Ravens: The Colts secondary looked like a MASH unit by the end of the Monday night game. Full credit to Lamar Jackson for winning that game with his arm. My only negative? I thought his legs looked tired. Can he repeat that passing performance through the air against the 6th ranked (Chargers) pass defense? Baltimore still needs to run the ball to win. And if Carson Wentz picked them apart…what is Justin Herbert going to do against them?

Bengals: A missed field goal. That’s all it was that kept them from being the on-the-field talk in the NFL this week. I still think this team can be good. I think they can beat anyone in their division…The question is do they believe they can beat anyone in their division? Oh, and a healthy Joe Mixon.

Browns: Top five in almost every defensive category—also in special teams—so how did they get torched for 47? Chargers are really good. Cleveland, believe it or not, needs to run the ball more. They need some duel back sets (ala Ernest Byner & Kevin Mack) to take the pressure off of Baker Mayfield. Jarvis Landry is still day-to-day and the offensive line is terrific, so go with your best—just run. Mayfield is slated to make 18-rocks next year and then he becomes a free agent. Do you extend him now or let him walk?

Steelers: Do you believe? I don’t know. It was Denver they beat. Now JuJu Smith-Schuster’s season is over. Good news is they ran the ball…but it was against Denver. They could move to 3-3 this week with Seattle—minus Russell Wilson—coming to town. Talk about a Dog of a Sunday night game.

Stuff:

Bills: David Essex once sang; “And where do we go from here?” Bills go the distance in the AFC if they don’t stumble and it will have to be a figurative “Turn Monster” that takes them down. And because they were smart enough NOT to build an indoor stadium—in Buffalo—they have set themselves up for a huge home field advantage in January. (This is why Detroit and Minnesota lost all their mojo. They got soft and went indoors.)

Patriots: Have locked up second place in the East. But based on the rest of their schedule they look like a 7-10 team—and out of the playoffs. They should play without concern for January and make it a JV season with an eye on next year. Starting with a decent pick in the draft.

Dolphins: There’s bigger issues here than Tua Tagovailoa, and/or Jacoby Brissett. The defense has given up the third most points (Behind KC & DC) in the NFL. Their secondary has struggled too much for a team without an offense, and their tackling has been suspect. This is a major crash & burn for a team with high expectations.

Jets: Don’t mess around, deal Marcus Maye. It’s gonna be a while before this team sees another “W.” Positives? The offensive line is improving, and that is something to build on. It’s 14th overall in pass protection. That’s really good, but they’re next to last

In run blocking. That’s something that can be coached up.

Stuff:

Titans: This team is just not special, but the Colts loss in Baltimore locked up the South for them. They spent money and made moves to pass the ball. They aren’t doing it very well and the pass protection has been terrible. And even with King Henry they’re only 8th best running the ball in the league. They need more, and without some kind of shake up—or revival—they’re one and done, likely losing to a Wild Card team at home.

Texans: This is not a good team, but they don’t get the love the Lions do for being bad. If Deshaun Watson’s last name was Gruden, they’d be getting some relief from the league on his contract. All you can say is they keep competing. Washington, KC, Miami, and Atlanta have all allowed more points than the Texans. I do enjoy watching Davis Mills.

Colts: It’s a long season, and with Titans being merely average, there is a shot—but they needed that win in Baltimore. It’s amazing they can pound the ball with Quenton Nelson sidelined. Carson Wentz seems to have found his footing, but the secondary, right now, is HC Frank Reich’s downfall.

Jaguars: They could—could—beat Miami at home this week. They’re not good, but they’re not a train wreck. And unless Urban Meyer pops up in the Email Witch Trials, Jon Gruden has supplied the distraction needed to take the spotlight from his lap dance episode. Meaning, this team should be able to regain some focus.

Joe T.’s Record

Stuff: Week 5 is the kind of week always expect to have. I was only a missed field goal away from Cincy winning and I didn’t know Carolina was going to die at home against Philly. The unexpected crash in Las Vegas is why I don’t bet.

(Note: I picked 16-games this week because the Rams played on Thursday. I don’t usually pick the Thursday game.)